by Raven Scott
“Well. . . I suppose you deserve some points for being truthful.” Something dark flashed in his eyes, and my blood pounded furiously in my ears, drowning out every other noise. Even Reece’s gravelly tone was slightly muffled as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “You wouldn’t mind if I videoed this, then, right?”
My eyes widened as a bolt of surprise of my own speared my chest, and I sucked in a sharp breath while he watched me through narrowed, hard eyes. Videoing this— as in, making a porno? And if we watched it, remembering this moment and how carefree I felt right in this second, I could relive this feeling whenever I wanted. This pivotal decision deserved to be captured forever. Even if Reece and I found out we hated each other and went our separate ways, I couldn’t just ignore the stride’s he’d helped me make as a person.
“I want you to.” I breathed my response, and Reece’s cheeks lifted in a slow, sultry smirk that curled my nose as he scanned me from bottom to top.
15
Riley
“Are you excited, Riley?” I shivered as Reece’s deep baritone wrapped around me, and he smiled even as he adjusted the camera on its tripod. “You have to speak up, baby.”
“Yes. I’m excited!” Rasping hoarsely, I flexed my toes against the hardwood as he left the camera. My nipples throbbed with need, and Reece braced both his arms on either side of my head. He was so close that his heat scorched me through his open shirt, and his eyes flared with desire when I craned my neck. “Please, Reece. . .”
“That’s what I like.” I trembled with expectation, my body so hot that I feared I’d melt through the leather binding my wrists. Reece closed the small distance between us, and a hot sigh of relief escaped me before he captured my lips. His kiss flooded with passion, gentle but firm, as his hands dragged down to cup my breasts. My brain clouded with thick, white fog when he softly pinched my nipples between his thumb and the side of his palm. Only his callouses were rough, and my need for him dribbled down my inner thigh.
Hot, open-mouthed kisses trailed saliva down my chin, and Reece squished my breasts together to lick between them. Groaning softly, I flopped my head back as I clenched my hands into loose fists. Not being able to touch him, knowing that he focused solely on me, was almost enough to bring tears to my eyes. My throat closed around my gasp when he sucked my nipple into his mouth, and dark eyes flickered up to meet mine.
All I saw was him as he lavished my breasts, each graze of his teeth on my skin winding my abdomen tighter. Reece shuffled to grind against me, and my knees jerked up automatically into his clammy palms. His jeans started to sag, giving way to coarse, thick hairs and tantalizing heat that billowed up my front. Kissing my lips firmly, he cupped my cheek with one hand as the other guided my legs around his waist. Pushing his pants down with my heels, I gasped when his hard, smooth cock sprung against my core to bury in my folds.
“Riley—” He groaned my name so sweetly, his tongue slipping into my mouth to tangle with my own. The taste of him was addicting, sending shocks through my cheeks, and I tilted my hips as he braced his forearm against mine. Rough fingers wrapped around mine, and Reece shivered as thrust his cock between my folds. My pussy throbbed desperately as I clenched, and desire gripped my heart in a vice. Groping my breasts shamelessly, shocks bolted down my abdomen.
Reece pulled back to reach between us, and I held stale breath in flaming lungs as he deepened our kiss. The mushroom head of his cock stretched my entrance before he paused, poised and ready. My insides quivered, delicious shivers speeding up and down my spine and through my legs.
“Oh, my God. . .” Slowly inching into my pussy, his way slippery from my need, I choked on my own gasp. Reece’s tongue left my mouth empty and wanting, but his teeth nibbled my lower lip and down my chin. His own sharp inhale sucked the heat from my collar bone, and I clamped down on him as my eyes rolled back. Waves of icy pleasure clashed with the fire of him in my chest.
My legs quaked, threatening to lose their grip under the intense pleasure that crashed into me. The pressure behind my eyes flooded my skull, and Reece grappled my ass as I spasmed lightly. His hips ground against mine as he thrust as deeply as he could, his little grunts and harsh breaths breaching the blood drumming loudly in my ears.
“Fuck—” I groaned when Reece pulled back, the thick ridge of his head coaxing my pussy tighter in a desperate bid to keep him. Tightening his grip on my ass, he kissed my pulse point before thrusting to set a deep, slow pace. He inhaled a rasp, his sparse chest hairs sticking to my skin as he filled my channel. “Riley—”
Goosebumps blanketed my skin as I clamped down on his thick cock, and Reece bit the swell of my breast gently. Clenching my teeth, I tried to fend off my orgasm, but the tenderness of his touch made it impossible. Gasping, I craned my neck in a futile effort to try to breathe. Reece’s palms shot to my hips, and the throbbing head of his cock reached that spot inside me that triggered absolute euphoria.
Licking the sweat dribbling down my neck, Reece’s powerful muscles flexed against my calves before he pulled back. Trembling uncontrollably, my mouth open in a silent cry, a faint sigh squeezed up my tight throat when he squeezed my breasts. My heart made a bid to leap out of my chest, but his hands swept down to nearly stop it beating when he thumbed my clit.
The shock of his flick made my legs numb, and Reece grunted as he grappled my thighs. Pinning me against the wall, his lips tilted in a small smile when he kissed me hard. His lips ravaged mine, his tongue curling against the back of my teeth while I struggled to keep myself together.
“Let go, Riley.” Murmuring into my mouth, Reece thrust hard, forcing the air from my lungs as I clenched around him. His cock pulsed to my beat, body rocking against mine. Sweat glued our kind together at the hips as powerful spasms rattled my ribs and slithered between my arched spine. “Yeah. . . just like that, baby.”
Colorful spots assaulted the darkness behind my lids, and leather creaked faintly as I slumped against Reece. His chest heaved, muscles twitching under thick skin that conformed to my body as we melted together. Pulling his cock out of my quivering pussy to grind against my abdomen, his grunts echoed in the dense atmosphere. Jerky and sharper, his thrusts only amplified the waves that rampaged through my body.
“Fuck! Shit!” Ducking his face into my neck, Reece shuddered and growled as his cum spurted to cling to my breasts. I stiffened as realization rattled my brain, but he was already panting as he pumped his cock with a weak fist. My mouth dried, and I sniffed a ragged breath when he flopped his head back to reveal a drained, satisfied expression. His features were bleary, but his bright, brown eyes were crystal clear when they met mine with a glimmer of affection in their unending depths.
“Ah-h. . .” Sucking in a sharp breath when he braced both his forearms on either side of my head with a hard bang, I blink hard. Tenderly, Reece nuzzled my cheek with his stubbled chin, and my eyelids fluttered closed.
“Do you want to keep going— with your mouth cock-level this time?” My brows twitched in what faint surprise I could muster, and Reece inhaled a deep, loud breath through flared nostrils. “Or are you not so hungry right now?”
“What?” The slur must’ve been enough of an answer for him, and he reached to unfasten the buckles holding my wrists.
“Don’t think too hard on it, baby.” And I couldn’t when my arms fell over his shoulders listlessly. Cradling me to his chest, Reece reached to turn off the camera before leaving the room. Inhaling his musky smell, I managed to run my fingers up the back of his hair with a groan. “Really, you are just a baby, aren’t you, Riley?”
Humming softly, I squeezed his sides with my knees as I took deep breaths into Reece’s neck. He smelled so good, and he carried me so gently up the stairs to the loft to set me on the bed. The silk sheets were rough compared to his skin, but he didn’t leave me bereft for long before flopping himself half atop me. Burying his face between my breasts, his own groan rumbled through my skull like thunder.
“Sing somethi
ng for me, baby.” Hoovering up air through my nose at Reece’s request, I forced my lips apart as he grabbed my leg and slung it over his side. It took my brain a few seconds to process his words, but he was patient— so, so patient. My eyes dazedly wandered the ceiling as I gulped down the cotton in my mouth.
Songs encapsulated so much. There was a song for everything and anything, and there had to be one for this moment tucked away somewhere in my head.
“♪Tell somethin’, girl. Are you happy in this modern world. . .♪” That’s from a movie. I feel like my life’s turning into a B-rated horror comedy. Pausing as I tried to remember the rest of the words, I licked my lips heavily. Closing my eyes, I couldn’t blink and open my mouth at the same time. Reece tightened his arm around me, rubbing up and down my thigh and ass with a little hum of encouragement. “♪Or do you need more? Is there somethin’ else you’re searchin’ for?♪”
16
Reece
Bopping my head to the beat flowing through the speakers of my apartment, I flipped over my egg perfectly even as my mind wandered to last night. Obviously, I’d miscalculated.
That smarmy dick Brandon didn’t have it in him to hire a hitman to kill Riley. The fact that he shit himself at the faintest glint of a gun meant he really was all talk and no bite. Which meant someone else had done it.
Which meant I was fucked.
“Damn.” Muttering to myself, I frowned under furrowed brows as the smell of bacon and butter filled the kitchen. There was nothing I could do about it, now, but wait and see what happened. Whoever issued the request to the Network hadn’t done so on any other sites, or Jerry just hadn’t found it— which was pretty impossible. The dark web was mighty, but Jerry was mightier.
Not that it helped me figure out who did it, of course.
My phone trilled on the counter, and I left my pan briefly to snatch it without bothering to look at the caller ID.
“Hello.” Holding the device to my ear, surprise twitched my brows at the faintly familiar, very Russian voice on the other end.
“Reece? I need help.” Joci sounded super nervous— galactic level nervous— really, really nervous, and I grunted lowly. “What’s this day— Valentines? What am I supposed to do that’s doesn’t involve food?”
Oh. Wonderful. Isn’t Valentine’s Day in less than a week? As much as I appreciated my boss getting one up on Ivano Makovich, he didn’t have to give Joci my fucking phone number. Clearing my throat roughly, I reached deep into my brain as I turned back to the stove. It’d been a while, but Joci’s English was getting better, and her Russian even started sounded a little. . . rough. I’m sure the only reason she’s using it is because she doesn’t want that guy Whatshisname to hear her.
Joci was a superwoman— or a prototype cyborg— but. . . I really didn’t want to be associated with her. She was just a reminder that I’d gotten fucked in the ass by Ophelia and her failures.
“Yeah— uh. . . why not just spend the day together and watch movies? Doesn’t Whatshisname work with computers? Maybe give him a massage or something. To be honest, it’s a stupid holiday that almost exclusively revolves around food, Joci.” My own Russian was rusty. I’d barely used it during Ivano’s diplomatic visit, and I already wasn’t that great at it. Carlyle needed Illya to be present at all the meetings, though, so I drew the short straw and got the grand title of ‘Tourist Guide’. “I thought you hate American holidays?”
“I ask his sister and brothers, and I am going to ask him to marry me.” I stiffened at the rough whisper, but Joci sounded entirely serious even as the instinct to laugh hysterically tightened my chest. “I need to do something first, then we go to his family after.”
“Oh. Uh— okay. Listen, I’m not sure if I’m the person you should be asking, Joci. The only good thing that comes out of Valentine’s Day is 75% off chocolate the day after. The last Valentines day I celebrated, I gave a card made of macaroni to my mom that I made in school.” I could feel her confusion over the phone, but Joci physically shook her head and rustled loudly through the line as I sighed. “Didn’t you learn your lesson at Thanksgiving that holidays suck ass?”
“I already asked everyone, but they aren’t right. So?” Rolling my eyes, I transferred my egg to a plate with a nice piece of toast on it as I thought on her predicament. I fucking hated Valentine’s Day, especially because I never necessarily had a girlfriend for it. Like fuck I would go out of my way for one of my partners— they didn’t mean that much to me.
“I mean, I really don’t know what to tell you. If you want to propose to your boyfriend, you should just do it without all the fancy bullshit, Joci. You’re a smart girl, so I’m sure you can think of some way to make it special.” What the fuck. I slapped some bacon and ketchup onto my sandwich and turned off the stove to sigh roughly. “I don’t know your relationship— I don’t even know the dude’s name. I honestly am not going to give you any better advice than what his siblings would’ve.”
“Ach. . . fine. Thank you, Reece.” Grumbling into my ear, Joci hung up on me, and I frowned as I set my phone on the counter. If I never saw her again, it’d be too damn early. I was traumatized by that month of meetings.
But all those thoughts wiped from my mind when soft hands crept up my shoulder blades, and I exhaled a heavy sigh. Twisting to focus on someone much prettier, a small smile stretched my lips as Riley pressed her lips to my bare shoulder. Her big, brown eyes flickered to meet mine, and I wrapped an arm around her waist to kiss her cheek.
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted, so I just left it plain.” Transferring the egg still in the pan onto another plate, I reached to scratch my stubble. I really need to shave. “How’d you sleep?”
“Great. I didn’t know you speak Russian, Reece.” Shrugging lightly, I suppressed a shiver of disgust as I passed her the sandwich. Taking my own, we walked to the table, and I couldn’t help but admire her ass peeking out of the bottom of my t-shirt. “I was wondering. . . about last night at the grocery store.”
Riley spoke up cautiously, and I slid into a chair to clench and release my jaw in preparation. How much could I get away with not saying? How much did she want to know? Most importantly, what could I say that wouldn’t come back to haunt me?
“I guess. . . the easiest way to explain it is— I work for the Mob.” Wide eyes trained on me as Riley paused, her sandwich about three inches off her plate, and I sat back to cup the back of my head in both my hands. “The modern interpretation of the Mob, at least. I’m a handyman. I do whatever jobs land in my lap. If someone wants something done, and they’re willing to pay the right price, I’ll do it.”
“S-so. . . you really could do what you said last night to Brandon?” It took her a long moment to speak up, and I nodded firmly. Riley’s slender brows drew in a troubled look, and my mouth dried as she tilted her head to gaze at her sandwich.
“I will do it. I’ve done it before for less. The fact that Brandon’s such a pussy that he shit himself when I didn’t even do anything is a good thing, by the way. That means I won’t actually have to. It’s bad to mix business with the personal.” I wanted to preempt any questions Riley might ask me, but I didn’t know where to begin. There were things I simply couldn’t tell her because it’d risk both of us. She slowly lifted her sandwich to her lips, and the crunch of toasted bread echoed loudly in the dense atmosphere. “I know how to fix sinks and other shit like that, of course. I’m a certified HVAC technician, and I have a plumber’s license. I do some electrical shit, too. Mostly, though, I clean up after other people. Does that bother you?”
I regretted asking, a sour taste coating my tongue as Riley chewed deliberately slowly. Reaching for my own sandwich, anxiety curdled my blood, and the egg and bacon were totally tasteless.
“. . . Do you like it?” Surprise twitched my brows, and Riley swallowed her bite as I glanced over at her. “Like. . . do you enjoy it? Or. . .?”
“It’s a job. I don’t just do it because it’s fun, if that’s wh
at you’re asking, Riley. I do it because I get paid for it. It’s like taking an office job rather than working at McDonalds, sorta. I don’t know if you’d consider that worse than enjoying it, though, to be honest.” I sniffed a little to clear the disbelief from clogging my sinuses, and Riley frowned under furrowed brows. “What?”
“Nothing. I just. . . I don’t know what I expected, but that wasn’t it. You seriously work for the Mob?” She cocked her head at me, setting her sandwich down to swipe back her frizzed bedhead, and I nodded firmly. “Like— really?”
“Yeah, really really. It’s not crazy dramatic or anything, but sometimes interesting shit happens. I got fielded a job once to find a bunch of stolen dogs— they were worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and they got stolen from a breeder. That was nuts.” My lips tingled as I stopped the story short— I sure as shit wasn’t going to tell Riley that the guy that stole the dogs got tortured to death at the breeder’s request. Her brows rose high, and I lifted my sandwich to nod at her. “Another time, I got a job to blow up a warehouse full of drugs because this other guy turned it down. Like, tens of millions of dollars worth of the stuff. I felt like Bruce Willis when I did that.”
“Why’d you do that? That’s a lot of money to set on fire?” Gradually, I was steering Riley away from the worse stories, like killing a freshly legal brat at the behest of his dad. Taking a bite of my sandwich, I thought back to those days so long ago.
Carlyle went ape shit; it was the only time in my ten years working for him that I’d seen him lose control. The absolute chaos that followed was glorious, and after a few months, all the heat had died down. No pun intended.